Historically, it has been a common practice to pierce the earlobe so that earrings can be worn. This practice spans all ages, from infants to adults, and both genders. Currently, it is popular to place multiple holes in an earlobe, and even continuing up to the top of the ear, so that many earrings can be worn at one time.
The holes in the earlobes are subject to build-up of residue including dried soap and shampoo, body oils and skin shed by the scar tissue formed around the hole. These residues can collect in the hole and on the earrings facilitating the growth of bacteria which can lead to infection.
Various devices have been described for cleaning or applying medication to pierced ear holes including U.S. Pat. No. 4,041,946 of Barton which discloses a shaft with two ends which snap together to form a ring through the ear hole, the shaft being made of absorbent material to allow medication to be applied to the inside of the ear hole; U.S. Pat. No. 4,497,402 of Karos--a floss-like material inserted through the ear hole to permit the floss, which is soaked with antiseptic solution, to be fed through the ear; U.S. Pat. No. 4,798,216 of McCarty et al. which, similar to Karos, describes a floss impregnated with astringent to be threaded through the pierced ear hole; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,943,274 of Edwards which describes a device in the form of a stud earring in which the shaft is hollow with pores therein through which medication is supplied to the ear hole.
Each of the above-described devices and methods will adequately function to clean or apply medication to the pierced ear hole, however, most are relatively complicated, requiring manufacture and assembly of intricate parts. The McCarty "cleansing floss" is relatively uncomplicated, but it requires the user to pull the floss back and forth to achieve the cleaning which might irritate the ear hole.
It would be desirable to provide a device for cleaning pierced ear holes which is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, and which accomplishes the cleaning in a single motion. It is to such a device that the present invention is directed.